Coasting-sled.



1). A. PAGE. GOASTING SLED.

APPLICATION FILED MA BHM, 1910.

Patented Dec. 6, 1910. FUEL l WITNESSES: 2 7 7 7 g-g INVENTOR.

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DOLPH A. PAGE, OF KEENE, NEW HAMPSHIRE.

COASTING-SLED.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 6, 1910.

Application filed March 14, 1910. Serial No. 549,139.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, DOLPH A. PAGE, a subject of the King of GreatBritain, residing at Keene, in the county of Cheshire and State of NewHampshire, have invented a new and useful Coasting-Sled, of which thefollowing is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in sleds, more particularlycoasting-sleds, and resides in certain peculiar general features ofconstruction in which are included a guiding or steering mechanism, allas hereinafter set forth.

The object of my invention is to produce a strong, durable, andcomparatively simple and inexpensive coasting-sled, which can be easilyand conveniently guided without the use of the feet.

A further object is to provide a sled of this kind that can be steeredwith a wheel, or with a rope, or by direct application of the hands tothe steering runner, such wheel with its directly connected andassociated parts being. detachable and removable so as to be entirelyout of the way when it is desired to resort to either of the other twosteering methods. The removal of the steering-wheel apparatus can beeasily and quickly effected, and the same thing is true in regard to thereplacing of the same.

Other objects will appear in the course of the following description.

I attain these objects by the means illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings, in which Figure 1 is a top plan of a coasting-sled whichembodies m invention in a practical form; Fig. 2, a si e elevation ofsuch sled; Fig. 3, a bottom plan of a portion of the sled, showing theequalizing springs in full; Fig. 4, a central, longitudinal, verticalsection through said sled, the rear portion being broken'ofi Fig. 5, atransverse, vertical section taken on the axial line of the steeringapparatus and looking toward the front end of the sled, thesteering-post being in elevation, and, Fig. 6, a front end elevation ofthe steering-fork-arm.

Similar figures refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

My invention is applicable to a sled which consists of a seat mounted ontwo runners and provided with a third runner for guiding or steeringpurposes, and I have shown such a sled in the drawings, wherein 1represents the seat, 2-2 represent the main runners, and 3 representsthe steering runner. The runners 2 are rigidly connected by means of twocross-pieces 4 and 5, and the seat 1 is fastened in place on saidcrosspieces. These members in and by themselves are old and well-known.

The steering runner 3 is pivoted at 6 to the cross-piece 5, such pivot,in the present case, passing downward through the seat 1 and the centerof said cross-piece into said runner some little distance from the backend thereof. The runner 3 is cut away at 7 to receive the cross-piece 5and so that said runner can swing to whatever extent may be necessarywithout interference on the part of said cross-piece. The seat 1 and thecrosspiece 5 bear directly on the runner 3, and a cross-bar 8, whichforms a foot-rest and is rigidly connected with the overhanging frontterminals of the main runners 2, also bears on said runner 3. In thisway the runner 3 supports the, front part of the sled, yet said runnermay be freely turned either to the right or to the left in spite of thefrictional engagement at the three points noted, because the members areso proportioned that the sled supports and carries its load rather wellback of the aforesaid points and very largely, chiefly in fact, on themain runners 2.

In order to maintain the runner 3 normally in parallelism with therunners 2, two equalizing springs 9 are employed. These springs areintroduced between opposite sides of the runner 3 and the runners 2, being located just in front of the forward end of the cut-away portion 7or a little in advance of the cross-piece 5, and having their endsfastened in any suitable manner to the runners. These springs, whilestrong enough to swing the runner 3 into coincidence with the central,longitudinal, vertical plane of the sled, when diverted from such planeand upon being released from the diverting force, and to retain it insuch plane, under ordinary or normal conditions, are not so stiff as tomaterially interfere with the proper operation of said runner incidentto the act of steering.

The steering runner 3 extends upward in front of the cross-bar 8, andprojecting from opposite sides of this upwardly-extending part are twoscrew-eyes 10 to which the ends of a rope 11 may be attached. Mounted onthe cross-bar 8 is a guide 12 for the rope 11 which passes from thescrew-eyes 10 back ward through openings or notches 13in the ends ofsaid guide.

The front ends ofthe runners 2 are provided with screw-eyes 14-14 forthe at tachment of a rope that may vbe used in drawing the sled.Ordinarily the rope 11 will be attached to the screw-eyes 10 andemployed for draft as well assteering-pun poses, but this or anotherrope may be attached to the screw-eyes l t and used as the draft rope,if desired;

The before-mentioned steering wheel a p paratus consists of asteeringwvheel 15, a vertical steering-post IG'to thetop of which saidwheel is fixed}, a horizontal forh arm 1 7 so connected with said postthat said arm moves with said post a cr0ss-bar1-8'- secured to the sledframe, and a' pivot; 19 whichper= mits the steering=post toturniwi thits-arm; The crossbar 18 extends across the top of the sled" over thecross piece 5,and is fas tened' to the upper edges ofthemnners 2 bymeans of two screw eyes 20, or'in any other suitable manner whiclrpermits said crossbar to be removed readily. The steering post 16- hasits base mortised into the fork arm 17 near the back end of thelatter,but this particular method of prov-iding arigid connection betweenthetwo members-is not important; The pivot 19" extends upward throughthe center of thecross-bar 1 8"-into the steering-post; coinciding withthe axis Ofsai'd post and constituting the real axis thereofi Thelocation and arrangement of the parts are such, by preference; that thepivot 19 is directly above the'pivot 6.

The fork-arnr 17 7 rests at its rear terminal; with" the steering-post1'6, on the crossbar 18, and said arm projects forward-from saidcross-bar to rest on the-upper edge of 'the runner 3, being augmented indepth at the front end, as clearly show-Ir in- Fig; 4", for that purpose;'in other words; said fQrk-arm is supported in a horizontal position onsaid cross-bar and said runner. Depending fromthe front end of'theforlt-arin 17, and adapted to receive between them and snugly embracealportion of therunnerB, aretwo lugs 21. These lugs form the fork of thearm 17, and by reason of their engagement with the runner 3 carry saidrunner with said arm when the latter is swung about the pivot 19, therunner, of course, swinging about its pivot 6.

Assuming that thesteering-p'ost apparatus just described isin place, itis clear that, when the steering wheel 15* is turned in eitherdirection, the steering runner 3 must also" be turned in thesamedirection, since the steering-post 16 then makes a partial revolution onits pivot 19 and carries with it the fork-arm 17 and the latter impartsits movement to said runner. Thesprings 9 tend to steady theaction ofthe steeringwheel apparatus and to restore the runner 3 to normalposition upon the release of the steering-wheel. Said steering-wheel issituated' in a suitable andconvenient position and at a sultable andconvenlent helght, so that the mechanism controlled thereby can beoperated to the best advantage, the operator being seated on the sledbehind the steering-post with his feet on the foot-rest. \Vhen thusseated the operator can also steer by means of the rope 11, regardlessof the-presence or absence of the'steering-wheel apparatus, the methodof so steering being obvious. v

When thesteering-wheel apparatus isnot required it canbe removed fromthe sled after first taking. out" the screw-eye's 20. Theabsence" ofsuch apparatus does not affect the steering-"runner in'any way. Withtheaforesai'd apparat'usout of the way a person ca nh'e at length on the'sled and steer the same by grasping: witln his hands the runner 3 andswinging said runner on its pivot 6 in whatever direction or: directionsmay be" necessary. The springs act in the samewayin throwing the runner3 into paral l'elism with the runners 2" and retaining it in suchrelationship with said runners; 2 whether the steering is'-accomp lisl1'ed' directly by hand or through the medium of the rope 1 1, as when bymeans of the steering wheel apparatus. It is sel-f-evident how the sledis guided and" its direction changed bythe steering runner and themanipulation thereof;

That this sled is susceptible tochangemot only in matters of shape andsize but also of construction of someor'all of itsparts", is evident',therefore"I don'ot desire or intend to be restricted in theseparticularsbeyond the restrictions impose'd by my claims:

What I claim as my invention, and ode sireto se'cureby Letters Patent,is-

1'. In combinationwith the frame" of a sled, including the main runners,thesea-t', and foot-rest crossbar located forward of said seat andconnecting. the front ends of said runners, of a central steering runnerat the forward end of the sled, said steering runner heingpivot'eddirectly to'sa'id frame beneath the same and arranged in directsupporting and contacting relation" to said cross-bar and to other partsof'the frame behind such bar.

2. The combination, in a sled, of the frame, including the" mainrunners; of the sled, a cross-barand aguide mounted" at the front end ofsaid frame" on" said runners, said guide having its endsada-ptedtmsupport a rope, a central steering runnerpiv ota-lly connected, with;saidframe" and extending beneath and in" contact with said crossbar andforward of said guide, and a rope attached to the forwardly-extendingpart of said steering runner and passin'g outwardly and rearwardlyto=the aforesaid ends of said guide and behind the same, such rope beingin sliding relation with said guide.

3. The combination, in a sled, with the frame, including the mainrunners, of the sled, and a centrally-located steering runner, for theforward end of the sled, pivotally connected with said frame, of asteering-post pivotally mounted on the sled and provided with aforwardly-extending arm arranged in direct engagement with said steeringrunner to operate the same when said post is operated, the steering-postpivotal connection being independent of the steering runner pivotalconnection but having its axial center coincident with the axial centerof said last-mentioned pivotal connection.

at. The combination, in a sled, with the frame, including the mainrunners, 0f the sled, and a centrally-located steering runner, for theforward end of the sled, pivotally connected with said frame, of aremovable member mounted on the sled, and a steeringpost pivotallymounted 011 said removable member and provided with aforwardly-extending arm arranged in direct engaging relation with saidsteering runner to oper ate the same when said post is operated.

5. The combination, in a sled, with the frame, including the mainrunners, of the sled, a centrally-located steering runner, for theforward end of the sled, pivotally con nected with said frame, andequalizing springs interposed between said main run- 11ers and 'saidsteering runner, of a steering post pivotally mounted on the sled andprovided with a forwardly-extending arm arranged to engage saidsteering-runner and to operate the same when said post is operated.

DOLPH A. PAGE. lVitnesses EVA S. Dow, LEWIS W. HOLMES.

